Blog Stats

What is the Maker Faire? At the Event City Creative several of us have been big Maker fans over the years and this reporter has attended almost every year since its inception in 2006. Although I’ve missed a couple of years due to personal reasons, my conviction and dedication to the Maker Faire – DIY (Do It Yourself) genre, and the immense amount of creative talent, positive attitudes and eclectic inventive ideas on display at this event – well simply put, as the Rolling Stones would say, “Wild horses couldn’t drag me away”. I would have to be laid out on a gurney to miss another Faire again.

To give you a fair definition of this eclectic festival of talent is a most difficult task, but one that we sure had fun defining. After talking with hundreds of Makers and attendees over the years we have come up with what we believe defines the Bay Area Maker Faire:

“A Creative’s Disneyland rolled into a

Futuristic Music Festival of the Arts & Sciences.”

Well that’s one definition of Maker Faire. The festival itself defines it as “Part science fair, part county fair, and part something entirely new”, whatever you might decide it is, Maker Faire is certainly a different type of edutaining, an all-ages gathering of tech enthusiasts, tinkerers, inventors, crafters, educators, engineers, electronic wizards, science clubs, hobbyists, authors, artists, students, and even an interesting collection of commercial exhibitors. All of these “makers” come together at a Maker Faire event to show-off their wares, whatever they may be and to possibly help you learn more by sharing what they have learned.

Maker Faire launched in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2006 as a tiny display of DIY enthusiasts demonstrating their ideas, inventions and creative projects. The interest and excitement of this genre, if you can even label it a “genre”, has done nothing but spiral into an incredible adventure where one can see and most importantly, experience, the entire Maker community first hand in all its glory. Last year at the San Mateo (San Francisco Bay Area) Maker Faire the crowds were spectacular and truly as gigantic as some of the displays at the Faire itself – over 120,000 attendees showed up over the weekend to take in this grand event – and most of those we spoke with said they would be returning without a doubt as long as the Maker Faire existed!

Wow! Can one believe the incredible growth of an event that offers such a wide array of experiences with a general ticket price ranging from $17.50 to $60.00? The popularity of the Maker Faire expanded greatly over a short time and soon took over the entire San Mateo Events Center within a few years. Now almost a decade into the sprawling event its legions of aspiring makers, educators, moms, dads, sons and daughters and many others come to participate in hands-on activities and learn new skills at the event. A record 195,000 people attended the two flagship Maker Faires in the Bay Area and New York in 2013, with 44% of attendees first timers at the Bay Area event, and 61% in New York. If you plan on going to the Faire here is some information to help you get there and around the San Mateo area. The Maker Faire is certainly family friendly – 50% attend the event with their children and many come from all parts of Northern California. Just last year alone there were 98 independently-produced Mini and Featured Maker Faires taking place around the world, including Tokyo, Rome, Santiago, and Oslo.

This years Maker Faire is expected to be the largest Maker Faire to date! Could it reach 150,000? Why is it so popular? Could it be that the event is primarily designed to be forward-looking showcase for Makers who are exploring new forms and new technologies. But the Faire is not just for those involved in technical fields; Maker Faire features innovation and experimentation across the spectrum of science, engineering, art, performance and craft.

The Maker Faire is an exciting and extremely entertaining event filled with an extremely diverse audience, and a fascinating, fun, curious mix of people who enjoy learning and who love sharing what they can do. It’s a venue for makers to show examples of their work and interact with an audience that can be just as eclectic as the makers themselves. All of this could be the result of the popularity explosion of this event, and as it continues to grow it will continue to present a tremendous opportunity for everyone who visits the Maker Faire; opportunities to learn, to grow, to walk away feeling real good about yourself, about your abilities to go out there and to do “something” regardless of what it might be. Some say it is an event that can easily become one’s obsession, as far fetched as that might be, it is an event that really does allow you to feel real good about yourself. Once you attend a Maker Faire one thing is certain, whether you become addicted to the eclectic fun and creative and inspirational atmosphere or not, you will come to appreciate the 950+ Makers displaying their projects and not only walk away learning something new, but truly, you will feel much better about yourself and that alone will urge you to return the following year for a whole different, but certainly just as positive, experience!

The Maker Faire Official App is available for iPhone and Android devices. You can download it here.
Event City is the new online Community for the Events & Creative Industries supporting the talent and projects within the Special Events, Hospitality, Music, Entertainment, Film and all Inventors and the full spectrum of the Arts. The Event City Creative Magazine is the online publication supporting Event City and the Event City Network. Event City launches in Q4 2014.

The Game of Drones is announcing the launch of our their official drone sports competition at the San Francisco Bay Area Maker Faire, on May 17 and 18 at the San Mateo Fairgrounds. Check it out, this is pure, unadulaterated, MAKER FUN!!

Game of Drones is excited to announce the launch of our official drone sports competition at Maker Faire Bay Area, taking place on May 17 and 18 at the San Mateo Fairgrounds. The Aerial Action Sports League (AASL) aims to be the premiere drone sports competition, showcasing pilot skills, engineering prowess, and technology innovation through aerial combat, flying obstacle courses, and other fun drone games.

“I deserve an endorsement! My band is the best ever!” The most unoriginal and all too repetitive cry heard continuously for the full four days at the NAMM Convention being held January 23 – 26 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim California. The company representatives, exhibitorsworking NAMM have the patience of Saints and the uncanny ability to politely smile and listen to every single ‘Pop Star’ describe why they deserve to receive products free of charge. If you’re lucky enough to be one of the 95,000 attendees at the NAMM Convention this year, it is important you follow some important advice as well as your heart to this glorious tradeshow for the musical and artistic. Besides a playground filled with all the latest and greatest being offered for to the music industry, it is a place to cut deals, all kinds of deals, all music related and some of them are pretty major.

The purpose of NAMM is commodities, marketing and branding. Manufactures and retailers have the opportunity to communicate directly and build relationships. Equipment is on display, products that even the most colorful of imaginations would have a hard time conjuring up, all types of services, demonstrations, lectures and classes are all offered during the NAMM Show. Networking opportunities abound. Members of NAMM pay their dues; Manufacturers pay for their booth space, transportation, insurance, salaries/commission and per diem to their employees. The purpose behind this convention is to make money, not give away merchandise.

So why do so many musicians treat this event as an opportune time to beg? After years of attending this convention, I have observed the most frequent mistakes made by musicians. I have taken the time out to humbly share with you a tad bit of advice so that you may possibly leave a lasting impression upon someone, respect their time for the reason they are there, learn more about what is out there – the latest and greatest, and perhaps to even secure an endorsement in the future.

1)Attitude – Remember the old saying “You catch more flies with honey.”? This is not the time to be ‘cool’, ‘unapproachable’ or ‘arrogant’. Smile, be friendly and say “Hello” to people. You never know who that person is that you just snubbed. They could possibly make you or break you.

2)Don’t expect everyone to know who you are. This rule applies to those who are even ‘Stars’. For example, you may be famous Jazz artist having a conversation with someone who only works with Classical musicians. That person may not have a clue who you are, your accomplishments, current projects or level of fame. For up and coming musicians, just accept the fact that very few people know who you are. You might be famous in your home town but until you sell millions of dollars’ worth of music, merchandise, and headline sell-out shows in large venues, you are an ‘unknown’.

3)“Give me, give me, give me.” Don’t say these words to anyone! I am sure the thought of “Why should I give you anything?” runs like a continuous loop through the minds of many product representatives. If you truly want to discuss the possibility of endorsements, obtain the proper contact information and dismiss yourself quickly. Let the representatives do their job which is marketing their products to ‘Buyers’.

4)“Mind your P’s and Q’s.” It is an old English saying when bartenders originating in the seventeenth century. It literally means “Mind your Pints and Quarts”, in other words, don’t get wasted and act like an idiot.

5)Germs – keep them away from everyone else. If you are ill, you should stay home anyway. If you become ill during your travels, use common sense. Don’t shake hands; cover your mouth with your arm when you cough; use Kleenex when you sneeze. Use hand sanitizer!!!

6)Aisle Clogging – move your body out of the pathway. Don’t stand in the middle of an aisle while people are trying to get by. Stand off the side, you will find you won’t get trampled. Say ‘Excuse me.” You may make a new friend when doing so.

7)Above all, have fun but play ‘nice’. You never know who might be watching you.

NAMM is the National Association of Music Merchants. You can become a Member of NAMM and the cost to join will depend upon your membership affiliation. The 2014 NAMM Show runs from January 23-26 in Anaheim, California. Join us this year as the world’s most important buyers and decision makers in the music industry converge on sunny Anaheim, at the music product industry’s premier event. The NAMM Show is where brands are built, legends are created and deals are made. At EVENT CITY you will see much more direct information about products, services and what exhibitors and attendees alike have to say about their experience at many conventions representing all of the Events & Creative Industries.

About the Author: Cindy Faust is the latest addition to the Event City Premier Magazine’s entourage of Writers and Reporters who are Journalists with real experience in the industries they write about. Ms. Faust has over thirty years’ experience in the music industry. She works with talent of all levels from the unknown to the famous, local to international. Cindy’s passion is to share her observations, knowledge and experience with the Event City audience. She hopes to induce comedy into her musings as she feels humor grabs attention and leaves impressions. She is the Enchantress and Owner of Alchemy By Faust, LLC a professional Talent Management and Booking Agency. She also is available for public speaking gigs, and is a pretty good vocalist as well.

Ad Tech, touted as the largest gathering of Digital Marketers in the world will be in San Francisco at the Moscone CenterApril 11-13, 2011 this year. Each year for the last couple of years Event City has covered Ad Tech from a general sense of the show. This year, as we launch we will look at Ad Tech through the eyes of you our loyal readers and members. Looking for advantages, opportunities and general information that could benefit you and your business endeavors.
We hope to find a great deal of business opportunities for you. Ad Tech takes place all over the world in these locations:

One of the companies involved in this world is OpenX, the world’s leading independent provider of digital ad technology, enables businesses to maximize their revenue by combining ad serving technology with one of the top ad exchanges. Major publishers like Groupon, Excite Japan, and France Telecom/Orange have selected OpenX to power their advertising businesses. OpenX ad serving products are used by 200,000 websites in 100 countries and serve over 350 billion ads monthly. OpenX Market reaches over 400 million monthly unique users globally.

Look for more information on OpenX and other superior companies to help you move into the world of digital marketing.

This is also a great opportunity to learn about the MPI organization and how important it is as a serious Planner or business person in these industries to become part of this Association.

The Event City Creative Magazine teams have covered this event for numerous years and have witnessed the growth and professional quality of production and creative endeavors. As we begin our live launch process we will cover more and more of these events and bring you a great deal of information specifically showcasing the features and benefits for those of your in these industries.

We look forward to seeing you at the show. Below please find the list of Exhibitors currently listed who will be participating in this event. If you are interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at this event please visit the Sponsor and Exhibitor Links below.

We bring you solutions for problems that exist and those that may exist in the future. We help you prevent headaches as well through learning about key products and services to help you in your business. Not only will you see new products now, but our coverage will continue well past the actual Events themselves.

You could be an Event or Meeting Planner, Corporate Manager, Hospitality & Events specialist, Travel, Art, Entertainment, Music Food & Beverage or Film industry professional and we will constantly bring you the latest and greatest to help you succeed!

It wasn’t just a little less than a year ago that gas was about half of what it is now (I personally have witnessed the $5.00 per gallon ++ sign on several gasoline stations – mostly Shell’s), and we were pretty upset about that. “How could gas get so high” we would ask ourselves. But now, wow, over $5.00 per gallon, are we INSANE OR WHAT??

How has this effected Events? How has this effected how people travel back and forth to events? How will this effect how we go on vacations this summer to visit Aunt May in the Midwest, or if we still will take our planned excursion to the Big Apple? How about those of you that plan events, will this hurt your bottomline? Will you plan events in an entirely different way from here on out?

No need to answer these questions. I just want to be clear on one thing; People will continue to plan events and travel, just not the same way they use to. Are the oil companies planning on this? HECK NO!

At Event City our Publishers, Editors, Managers, the “powers that be”, have decided to begin a series of articles and reports for all that is Technology, and how it spans into YOUR industry. Continue reading →